19 Years of Real Estate Photography: From Paper Maps to Drones

This April, Gress Photography is celebrating 19 years Of Real Estate Photography, and honestly—it’s hard to believe.

When we started back in 2007, the real estate industry—and photography—looked completely different than it does today. So we thought it would be fun to take a look back at how things used to be… and how far everything has come.

(Watch the video below to hear the full story.) 

📸 When Real Estate Photography Was… Very Different

When we first started, hiring a professional real estate photographer wasn’t the norm.

Most agents were:

• Using office cameras

• Taking their own photos

• Uploading a handful of images to the MLS

  
  

Today, that’s completely changed.

Listings now often include:

• Professional photography

• Drone imagery

• Video walkthroughs

• 3D tours

• Virtual staging and twilight images

  
  

The way homes are marketed today is a full experience—not just a few photos.

📷 Our First Camera (and How We Shot Homes)

Our first camera was a Nikon D200, and let’s just say… things were a little different.

We were:

• Shooting handheld

• Using an on-camera flash

• Not using tripods

• Editing the best we could to make images look good

  
  

Looking back, it’s amazing to see how far both the technology and expectations have come.

🗂️ Before Technology Made Everything Easier

There was no online scheduling system. No apps. No dashboards.

We tracked everything with:

• A physical planner

• Handwritten notes

• Papers stuffed with shoot details

  
  

Lose the paper… lose the appointment.

Today, everything from scheduling to delivery is streamlined and automated—but back then, it was a completely different workflow.

🗺️ GPS… or Just a Map on the Dash

Navigation was an adventure in itself.

Before smartphones, we relied on:

• Paper maps

• Early GPS units sitting on the dashboard (that loved to slide off mid-turn!)

  
  

It sounds funny now, but at the time, it was just part of the job.

🚁 Before Drones Changed Everything

Aerial photography in 2007 was not easy.

Your options were:

• Climb a ladder

• Use a long pole

• Rent a bucket truck

• Hire a plane or helicopter

  
  

Today, drones have completely transformed real estate marketing—making aerial imagery accessible, efficient, and incredibly impactful.

📱 A Different World in 2007

To put things in perspective:

• The first iPhone had just been released

• Instagram didn’t exist

• Social media marketing wasn’t part of real estate

  
  

Now, social media and mobile browsing are central to how buyers discover and evaluate homes.

💲 Then vs Now (Just for Fun)

A few things we looked up from 2007:

• Gas: ~$2.80/gallon

• Average home price: ~$247,000

• Milk: ~$3/gallon

A lot has changed since then—both in everyday life and in real estate.

❤️ What Hasn’t Changed

Over the past 19 years, we’ve had the privilege of photographing thousands of homes and working with so many incredible Realtors throughout Central Pennsylvania and beyond.

What hasn’t changed is how much we value:

• Our relationships with clients

• The trust you place in us

• Helping your listings stand out

  
  

🎉 A Small Thank-You

To celebrate our 19th anniversary, we’re offering a $19 anniversary credit toward any photo package booked in April.

Promo Code: GP19

Valid: April 1–30

Closing

It’s been an incredible journey—and we’re excited to see what the future holds (and what real estate marketing will look like 19 years from now).

Thank you for being part of our story.

Beth & Carl Gress

Gress Photography

Video Transcript: Hi everyone. It's Beth and Carl Gress from Gress photography, and this April, we're celebrating 19 years in business, which is honestly very hard to believe when we started Gress photography back in 2007 the real estate industry was really different, and photography in general was so different from what we see today. So we thought it'd be fun to talk about a few things that have changed over the past 19 years.

So when we started back in 2007the first iPhone was just released, which is kind of crazy when you think about it, Instagram wasn't a thing. Social Media Marketing wasn't a thing. Most people used their office camera to take pictures, so hiring a professional photographer wasn't really something that was done.  Today, listings include professional photos, a lot of times, aerial photography, video, 3d tours, and then we see a lot of virtual products coming in with Virtual Staging and virtual Twilights and that sort of thing. So the way homes are marketed now, is completely different than what it was looking like back in 2007 we got started.

So let's talk about what it actually looked like back in 2007 when we started taking pictures, I remember and it's crazy. We're using a D200 from Nikon.

Our first camera was a Nikon D200. We used to use a flash on top, yeah, and then handheld, no tripod, editing these photos, trying to make them look good. It was back when think about it - There was no Google Calendar. There was no way to track appointments or anything like that online. I had, like a planner. I would write appointments down, scratch them off when they change stuff, papers inside, with information about the shoot and all that kind of stuff. And it, it really was crazy, because you lost the paper, you lost the shoot, and you're like, oh my gosh, what do you do? And then photo delivery too. I don't even remember how we did that. Dropbox? Was Dropbox a thing then, or just starting to be a thing? Yeah. So we would send, like a dropbox link to people, and then struggle with them, trying to figure out how to use it. It was just really not an easy thing. Like, was Google Maps even a thing?

Then, well, the iPhone introduced Google Maps, right? So, before we had the iPhone, we were using, like a real freaking map, well, and the GPS, oh,the GPS, that's right, it would sit on top of the dash. It would sit on the dash, You go around the turn, it would slide down the dashboard, I forgot about that. Yeah, but yeah, that was thatwas like being a cowboy.

So funny, so yeah. Now technology has certainly made our lives so much easier, with the cameras, even and all of the methods of keeping track of stuff and placing orders it, it has really transformed business and has really, I mean, technology has really helped us make life a little bit easier when it works, new age advancement, yeah, when technology works. So that's why I forgot all about the GPS thing, the Garmin GPS. That's so funny, you know. But anyway, so yeah, things certainly have changed over the years. So fun fact, so in 2007 when the iPhone came out,the Christmas before. So Christmas of 2006 is when the Wii was introduced at Christmas time.

So that was funny. And then another thing I looked up is in 2007 was the final episode of The Sopranos. So if you remember that, that was when we decided to make this a go as a real business. In 2007 that was a good show. That was a good show, yeah, but it's kind of funny because, like, we say we started our business in 2007 but we were shooting houses before that. It was just like a thing, like somebody from the office would be like, Hey, can you guys photograph that house for us? And I'd be like, okay, but I remember the first shoot I went to on my own, terrified. Terrified. But do you remember? I do remember.

I remember when we bought our first camera, and you were about ready to kill me it was so much money as so expensive, so much money. And now buying a new camera is just like, okay, yeah, we just recently purchased the z8 so yeah, I still can't think it was expensive, but yeah, it's really funny. So while we're at it, let's talk about aerial photography. Like, back in the day, in 2007 if you wanted aerial images, you either were getting a huge ladder to try to get up off the ground, putting, yeah, running a bucket truck, or putting your camera on top of a 25 foot

pole, and your other option was like hiring an airplane or a helicopter to get aerial photos.  So now the drone certainly makes life so much easier with capturing those images, but certainly taking the tests and getting certified is not any fun.  How long - when did you start flying the drone? We at first we hired somebody, and then he decided he was going to go into fine art and quit drone. That's right, I forgot about him. That's when I had to get mine. But how long ago was that?  That was so I did, over 10 years.  Oh, yeah, back when the Phantom two was the newest drone.  Yeah, the white for that little white thing. My gosh, yeah. So now everybody has gotten their own license. Everybody's capable of flying the drone and having fun with it. Yeah, it's just amazing how that that piece of equipment has changed everything when it comes to real estate photography, absolutely.

So of course, a lot of Everyday Things have changed too since 2007 so I did a little research, and back in 2007 gas averaged around $2.80 a gallon, and the average home price was about $247,000 which is kind of nuts, because, like a buy level was under $200,000 and now they're way over 300 which is nuts. Yeah, it's freaking nuts.

And anyway, milk back then was about three bucks a gallon. I should have looked up how much orange juice is, because orange juice right now is like $9 a gallon, and I think milk is pushing like between four and five a gallon, not quite sure, and eggs. I'm not sure what eggs are now, yeah, thank God our chickens are laying eggs. So anyway, so over the past 19 years, we've had the privilege of photographing 1000s of homes across Central Pennsylvania and the greater Philadelphia area. And with that, we've been working with many incredible Realtors as well, and we're incredibly grateful for the trust that our clients have placed into us every day over the years. So to celebrate that Carl, we're offering a small Thank you. You're going to share. Why don't you tell them about the anniversary offer that we're having?

So throughout the month of April, we're offering a $19 anniversary credit towards any photo package booked in the month of April. So just use the promo GP19 when you place your order, and you'll automatically get that $19 off your photo package that you've booked. And we can't thank you enough for being part of our journey. Thank you so thank you for being part of our journey for the past 19 years.

It together for five minutes. Five minutes. Can we just keep this together and keep it moving? You can cry afterwards,

oh my gosh. And so anyway, thank you for being part of our journey for the past 19 years and hopefully for the next 19 as well. So we can't thank you enough for all of your support. And we're really looking forward to what the future holds for us and for Gress photography and certainly seeing what technology offers us as well in the future, to see what things are going to look like in 19 years from now. So as always, we are Carl and Beth Gress, with Gress photography, we love to hear from you, so feel free to always give us a call. Don't call Carl. I won't answer unless you are, yeah, he won't answer the phone. But you can call me because I would love to talk to you. Our number 717-575-3520, So as always, if you didn't know by now, we do have the ability to place your orders online on our website. We do have an app that you can download for free from the App Store, the Google Play store, where you can place your orders online and access all of your photos and everything online. And I'm still crying, so sorry about that. But anyway, I can't thank you all enough for being part of our journey, and look forward to serving you for another 19 years. Thanks, guys. Thanks.